Posted on by Emily

It really is too tight.

Kate has always been realllllllly particular about the way her clothes feel. Nothing can be tight – elastic waistbands are a must. There’s no method to her madness, either – one day a pair of pants will be fine and the next they “hurt” and are too tight. So many of her pants go unworn because they don’t feel good to her.

It drives me bananas. To put it mildly.

Yesterday we saw that Target had knit summer clothes on sale for $4, so we took both the kids to stock up. We bought Kate a bunch of little skirts and t-shirts that all matched each other so that she can mix and match and be fine. When we got home, I had her try them on before I took off the tags. She tried on a navy blue one first, and as soon as it was on she started squirming and doing her “it’s too tight” dance. I immediately got mad. I hate to say it, but it’s true. I was mad because there was no way that cotton skirt was uncomfortable, but sure enough she was acting like it.

She decided to try on the rest of the skirts, even though I told her it was pointless because they were all exactly the same. She insisted that the rest of them felt great, and I insisted that that was impossible because they were all exactly the same and I was going to take them all back rather than risk her deciding tomorrow that the rest of them didn’t fit.

I was steaming. I’m not proud of it. This is a hot button issue between us, but I have got to learn to remove my emotions from it and calm down.

In any case, we were still in the midst of our discussion about how all the skirts were the same, and she had just said “I don’t know why Mommy. The rest of them feel great,” when I happened to catch a glance at the tag on the navy skirt.

It was an extra-small.

The rest of them are smalls.

I immediately apologized to her and told her she had been right all along, and she was fine. But I felt like complete crap. It was a good reminder for me to hear her out rather than immediately jump to freak-out mode, which is exactly what I do when she complains about clothes being uncomfortable. Most of the time her complaints seem so irrational to me, but sometimes, at least, they are real to her, and I need to pay attention.

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11 Replies to “It really is too tight.”

  1. My daughter does the same thing and she’s only 2 (what will it be like when she’s older??!). It drives me crazy how one minute a pair of jeans will be fine and the next minute they are waaaay to tight. Grr… And the socks! Oh boy I wish all socks were made without seams. Seriously.

    But, at the same time, I’ve been trying to make sure that her complaints are addressed, and that if something really is too tight or the seams of her socks are messed up that we fix them.

  5. My sister, who is now a fashion diva, wore homemade elastic waist skirts and cotton turtlenecks every day from 3-5 years old. She had such weird clothing issues! I think this fight is entirely normal and so is your frustration.

  6. I hate to say it but…I sooo needed that laugh! I go thru the same thing with my 2yr old twins-the boy is worse (crazy huh)I’m so glad I found ur blog.It makes me feel I’m not completely crazy

  8. I hate it when I jump to conclusions and get mad at my kids when I shouldn’t. I feel so, so awful. But I find kids love a sincere apology and a big old “mommy was wrong”. I think they like having that ammo. Will probably come back to haunt me when they are teenagers.

  10. My seven year old daughter will only wear socks from the Dollar Tree. They are very thin and have no seam.

    Nothing gets near her waist. Pants/skirts/shorts all worn so low on her hips that it drives me crazy!

    And of course, EVERYTHING is itchy or ugly. The other day she told me her nightgown was too soft. Really? GRRRR

    Sorry, just meant to say, I feel your pain on this one. 🙂

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